Colombian artist Johan Barrios seems to be fascinated with how quickly the superficial veneer of propriety can disintegrate. His well-heeled and well-groomed characters are outfitted with all the signifiers of upper class status — blouses neatly tucked into pencil skirts, tailored blazers, leather couches. Yet by omitting select details in his realistically-rendered works, Barrios endows them with a sinister tone. In one piece, a woman lies despondent on a glossy, tile floor. Black party balloons hover over her like an ominous cloud. A creeping suspicion sets in as one begins to wonder whether this polished world hides dark secrets.
The work of Sean Landers has long examined the relationship between artists and their own work, including the adventures of the character Plankboy. In a recent show at Rodolphe Janssen Gallery, he shared new paintings featuring Plankboy, many taking on mythological narratives. Landers was last featured on our site 
Chinese artist 
Super Future Kid’s candy-colored paintings and sculptures fill Gallery Poulsen later this month with her new show, "Smells Like Teenage Armpit.” The artist says that all of the dimension-hopping paintings, crafted in acrylics and spraypaint, “started out as ideas I had just before falling asleep in my bed.” The show kicks off on Oct. 26 and runs through Nov. 16.